Dwarf Fruit Trees Can Give You a Back Yard Orchard

Nearly every householder wishes they might have fruit trees in their back yard. But, alas! One apple tree of the usual size takes so much space there is little room left for anything else. Besides, such a tree presents other almost insurmountable problems – difficulty in spraying, pruning, picking the fruit, and taking care of the “drops” that are not usable. Not only the apple, but all other fruit trees of standard size give one much the same problems, and usually the idea of having fruit trees in the back yard is abandoned.
This is no longer necessary because dwarf fruit trees of many kinds now being produced in our nurseries make it possible for everyone who has a back yard to enjoy raising and eating fruit that they have grown.

One must not get the idea that dwarf trees are something new under the sun. The Chinese and Japanese have been experts in dwarfing not only fruit trees but large forest trees for centuries. Their art in this has never been excelled and over the centuries has assumed the aspects of a ritual. In Europe, the dwarfing of fruit trees has been practiced for generations in order that fruits almost impossible to grow in the colder regions of that continent might more easily be protected and grown for family use. Other reasons for dwarfing have been the lack of space for large trees and the inability to care for them properly when all work must be done by hand.

How Dwarfing Began

Perhaps the idea of dwarfing fruit trees arose from the fact that once in a while a natural dwarf appears among both trees and flowers, the seeds of which very often will produce dwarfs like their parent which bear flowers and fruit comparable in size and quality to their larger ancestors. However, dwarf fruit trees would be few indeed if this were the only method we could depend upon.

It was found a long time ago that a certain type of dwarfing could be secured by restricting the root growth of a tree or by trimming its top growth heavily. This method is still used to some extent where a shrub or tree is covering more ground than was originally allotted to it. It is only a makeshift and must be frequently repeated if the dwarfing is kept permanent.

Fortunately, some three and a half centuries ago someone in Europe noticed that nearly all of our common fruit trees had uncultivated relatives that were natural dwarfs and bore fruit that sometimes was edible and sometimes not. Cions of cultivated varieties were grafted on these roots and it was found that while the resulting tree was a dwarf the fruit was like that of the tree from which the cion or bud was taken. Thus modern dwarfing arose in Europe nearly three centuries ago, and in America, where better climate and more orchard space was available, about a hundred years ago. There are now such dwarfing stocks to take care of apples, pears, quinces, peaches, and plums. However, apples and pears make up a large share of the dwarf fruit trees both for home and commercial growing.

Easy to Care For

In this country, dwarf fruit trees are especially interesting to the “backyard” grower for several reasons. Since space is usually limited, they frequently give the only chance to pick fresh fruit from his own trees. Generally, single trees of any sort must be cared for by hand by the owner himself. Dwarf trees are easily sprayed and pruned and their fruit protected from squirrels and birds. Also, both their blossoms and their fruit add beauty and, therefore, interest to the garden. Lastly, they do not monopolize space, nor cause much undesirable litter by dropping and decaying fruit. Another advantage of dwarf fruit trees is that they come into bearing from two to three years earlier than standard trees.

Dwarf fruit trees, just like their larger relatives, can be grafted so as to bear several varieties. If such grafts are selected wisely, a long bearing season can be had. Such grafting also provides good cross pollination, which in some cases is necessary, and in all cases is considered better than self-pollination.

If one desires, one can make dwarf fruit trees ornamental as well as useful by espaliering them against a wall or a trellis, making them grow on wires like a grape, or cutting them into weird or fancy shapes.

Commercial growers seldom use dwarf trees, but sometimes they do use them as fillers between standard trees that must be set so far apart that several years must elapse before the space allotted them is really used. The fact that the dwarf trees will produce several crops before the space they occupy is needed for the larger trees is thought to be more profitable and less work than a so-called cover crop which, if desired, can still be grown between the rows of large trees.

It is undoubtedly best to buy your dwarf fruit trees from nurserymen who specialize in them. Their experience makes them better able to help the buyer be successful in growing them. Then, too, the nurseryman is likely to know which varieties of fruit are best adapted to your area and to dwarfing. In purchasing dwarf pear trees, be sure to select varieties that are not subject to “fireblight” in your region.

Dwarf fruit trees should be set from ten to 15 feet apart and the graft union should always be above the ground. The dwarf tree that you buy at the nursery is usually one year old and may have a branch or two. If you live in the colder northern states, it is best to set out your dwarf fruit trees in the spring, but where the winters are not severe, you may set your trees either in spring or fall. Most fruit trees like good well-drained soil. Cherries, particularly, will not do well in soil that is not well drained. Use no fertilizer when you plant your tree, but when it begins to show real growth, one or two pounds of garden fertilizer with a rather high nitrogen content can be scattered on the ground around the tree. This should be done each year, increasing the amount of fertilizer as the tree gains in size.

Mulching Important

It is well to mulch your trees, but keep the mulch well away from the tree itself as not only rabbits ruin fruit trees. Mice, too, can and do ruin fruit trees by gnawing the bark and can conveniently hide themselves in mulch, especially if it is heavy and too near the tree.

Dwarf fruit trees are easily trained and thus can be made truly ornamental. In the colder regions of Europe they are sometimes grown against the south side of walls in espalier fashion, and are properly pruned to make this possible. Some nurseries will furnish trees with the preliminary pruning already begun.

Don’t Forget Pruning

Ordinary pruning is not too important during the early years of a dwarf; fruit tree’s growth, but later some thinning is nearly always necessary. Branches that grow straight up are not desirable on dwarf pear and apple trees and should be cut back far enough to cause the tree to spread horizontally. This makes the tree less susceptible to wind damage. Both pears and apples bear their fruit on “spurs” and these should not be removed.

Some apple trees are subject to fireblight and many varieties of pears are seriously injured by it and even killed. The affected branch should be removed and destroyed at once. The instrument used in the removal of the affected branch should be sterilized after every cut or it is likely to infect healthy wood.

Spraying should follow the regular orchard routine and if really good fruit is wanted, should never be neglected. It is well to remember that all dwarf fruit trees are subject to the same diseases as their larger relatives and for that reason it is important to select varieties that are most resistant to those troubles.

by G Marshall

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